Published: Saturday, December 3, 2011 at 5:45 p.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, December 3, 2011 at 5:45 p.m.

From a street curb to a stadium skybox, an atypical amount of violence occurred last weekend surrounding the University of Florida-Florida State football game — even given the fierce rivalry.

Authorities ejected 167 people from the stadium for violations. And in what police say was a first, a fight broke out among people in an elevator outside the pricey skyboxes.

Violence also occurred outside the stadium. In two of the more egregious incidents, a man was beaten and his head stomped, and two people doing FSU's tomahawk chop while walking along West University Avenue were accosted.

The amount of trouble surpassed that of a usual UF home game. And while police say problems arise whenever UF plays a major rival, last weekend was one of the worst.

"There was definitely an unusual level of violence," Gainesville police Cpl. Angelina Valuri said. "We see fights, we see an increase in arrests for disturbances, but we don't expect the violence that was used this year."

Neither team has lived up to expectations this year. Ilan Shrira, a UF visiting professor of psychology, said that could be a factor in the violence.

Some people take their teams so seriously that it becomes part of their identity, he said. When the team does not perform well, fans may become frustrated and defensive, which could lead to inappropriate behavior.

"Frustration is going to be more likely to lead to aggression … There is more defensiveness because people are less certain that Florida is as good, so other people are taken more as a threat and enemy," Shrira said. "Some of it may come from an expectation — the team was doing well before. It becomes part of people's identity. It becomes a personal thing. It just becomes central to people."

Two men were arrested and one hospitalized following a fight on an elevator outside the westside, sixth-floor skybox. Police said one of those arrested was a Florida fan upset with the Gators' loss while the other was an FSU fan. Several people tried to break up the fight, creating a fracas.

A dispute between fans of each school before the game led to the hospitalization of one man. He was punched in the nose and knocked to the ground. One man then used his foot to kick the victim's head against the curb, knocking him unconscious.

The night before the game, a man was arrested after he spotted two people doing the Seminole chop. He jumped out of his car and assaulted them.

Meanwhile, the total ejections from the stadium during the game may have set a record and was considerably higher than other rivalry games in the past few years.

University police data show that the second highest number of ejections this year occurred during the Alabama game, with 109.

UF and FSU last played in Gainesville in 2009, when 77 people were tossed. When UF last squared off in a rare contest with the University of Miami in Gainesville, 121 people were removed.

And the highest ejection total in the 2010 season happened at the LSU game with 119.

University police Maj. Brad Barber said rivalry games that take place in the evening tend to create more problems. But they usually don't happen in a skybox, he added.

"When we were reflecting back, we could not recall of a situation that has occurred anywhere near the circumstance that unfolded that night," Barber said. "That is not typical activity that we have seen in that location."

Alcohol is allowed in skyboxes but not the rest of the stadium. University Athletic Association spokesman Steve McClain said the stadium has 80 suites. The suites on the west side cost $87,000 a season for a 30-ticket suite and $58,000 for a 20-ticket suite.

The purchaser of a skybox can allow anyone into the suite and can be held responsible for a guest's behavior, with penalties including loss of ticket privileges, McClain said.

"If something happens, there is a possibility of recourse or action on the season-ticket holder. If you give your ticket to someone else, you are still responsible," McClain said. "We are not going to get in the way of the (police) investigation. But obviously if there has been a violation of our fan code of conduct, we will look into that."

<p>From a street curb to a stadium skybox, an atypical amount of violence occurred last weekend surrounding the University of Florida-Florida State football game — even given the fierce rivalry.</p><p>Authorities ejected 167 people from the stadium for violations. And in what police say was a first, a fight broke out among people in an elevator outside the pricey skyboxes.</p><p>Violence also occurred outside the stadium. In two of the more egregious incidents, a man was beaten and his head stomped, and two people doing FSU's tomahawk chop while walking along West University Avenue were accosted.</p><hr />
<center>
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/GainesvilleSun" target="_blank">
<img src="/assets/images/widgets/GSun/Teezers/GSFacebookTeaserSmall.jpg" />
</center>
</a>
<hr /><p>The amount of trouble surpassed that of a usual UF home game. And while police say problems arise whenever UF plays a major rival, last weekend was one of the worst.</p><p>"There was definitely an unusual level of violence," Gainesville police Cpl. Angelina Valuri said. "We see fights, we see an increase in arrests for disturbances, but we don't expect the violence that was used this year."</p><p>Neither team has lived up to expectations this year. Ilan Shrira, a UF visiting professor of psychology, said that could be a factor in the violence.</p><p>Some people take their teams so seriously that it becomes part of their identity, he said. When the team does not perform well, fans may become frustrated and defensive, which could lead to inappropriate behavior.</p><p>"Frustration is going to be more likely to lead to aggression … There is more defensiveness because people are less certain that Florida is as good, so other people are taken more as a threat and enemy," Shrira said. "Some of it may come from an expectation — the team was doing well before. It becomes part of people's identity. It becomes a personal thing. It just becomes central to people."</p><p>Two men were arrested and one hospitalized following a fight on an elevator outside the westside, sixth-floor skybox. Police said one of those arrested was a Florida fan upset with the Gators' loss while the other was an FSU fan. Several people tried to break up the fight, creating a fracas.</p><p>A dispute between fans of each school before the game led to the hospitalization of one man. He was punched in the nose and knocked to the ground. One man then used his foot to kick the victim's head against the curb, knocking him unconscious.</p><p>The night before the game, a man was arrested after he spotted two people doing the Seminole chop. He jumped out of his car and assaulted them.</p><p>Meanwhile, the total ejections from the stadium during the game may have set a record and was considerably higher than other rivalry games in the past few years.</p><p>University police data show that the second highest number of ejections this year occurred during the Alabama game, with 109.</p><p>UF and FSU last played in Gainesville in 2009, when 77 people were tossed. When UF last squared off in a rare contest with the University of Miami in Gainesville, 121 people were removed.</p><p>And the highest ejection total in the 2010 season happened at the LSU game with 119.</p><p>University police Maj. Brad Barber said rivalry games that take place in the evening tend to create more problems. But they usually don't happen in a skybox, he added.</p><p>"When we were reflecting back, we could not recall of a situation that has occurred anywhere near the circumstance that unfolded that night," Barber said. "That is not typical activity that we have seen in that location."</p><p>Alcohol is allowed in skyboxes but not the rest of the stadium. University Athletic Association spokesman Steve McClain said the stadium has 80 suites. The suites on the west side cost $87,000 a season for a 30-ticket suite and $58,000 for a 20-ticket suite.</p><p>The purchaser of a skybox can allow anyone into the suite and can be held responsible for a guest's behavior, with penalties including loss of ticket privileges, McClain said.</p><p>"If something happens, there is a possibility of recourse or action on the season-ticket holder. If you give your ticket to someone else, you are still responsible," McClain said. "We are not going to get in the way of the (police) investigation. But obviously if there has been a violation of our fan code of conduct, we will look into that."</p>